Unilateral action on climate change and the moral obligation to take leadership

Daniel Steel; Rachel Cripps; C. Tyler DesRoches; Paul Bartha; Kian Mintz-Woo

doi:10.1111/josp.12592

Unilateral action on climate change and the moral obligation to take leadership

Daniel Steel
, Rachel Cripps
, C. Tyler DesRoches
, Paul Bartha
, Kian Mintz-Woo

School of Society, Politics and Ethics

University of British Columbia
Arizona State University

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

We claim that a moral obligation to take climate leadership by means of unilateral mitigation depends on the existence of a plausible follow-the-leader mechanism whereby unilateral mitigation by some increases the probability of sufficient mitigation by others to avert catastrophic climate impacts. By understanding these mechanisms, we can better articulate the obligation for climate leadership across various sectors, from government to individual actors, in the fight against climate change.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	219-229
Number of pages	11
Journal	Journal of Social Philosophy
Volume	57
Issue number	2
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1111/josp.12592
Publication status	Published - 23 Oct 2024

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

SDG 13 Climate Action

Keywords

climate change
climate ethics
climate justice
leadership
mitigation

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10.1111/josp.12592

https://hdl.handle.net/10468/17536Licence: CC BY-NC-ND

Cite this

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Unilateral action on climate change and the moral obligation to take leadership

Abstract

UN SDGs

Keywords

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